Simplifying quantum simulations through symmetry
Before every quantum simulation, a preliminary calculation (qubit routing) is required, in which the quantum computer maps the structure of the simulated quantum system to the architecture of its own quantum bits. For quantum systems with a periodic structure, Joris Kattemölle and Guido Burkard at the Department of Physics have developed a method to reduce the necessary computing power by a factor of a thousand or more. They utilize the symmetry of the quantum system to simplify the calculation.
The two physicists from the University of Konstanz describe their method in an open-access article in the journal Physical Review Letters. They also provide the open-source software QuanTile, so that anybody can use the process themselves. The software transfers the patterns of a periodic quantum system to the qubits' structure of the quantum computer used.
The open-source software QuanTile can be downloaded free of charge from Joris Kattemölle's GitHub directory. The directory encompasses code, data and images for qubit routing of quantum systems with a periodic structure.
The corresponding open-access article (doi: doi.org/10.1103/cswp-xy7k) describes the method on which QuanTile is based. You can download it free of charge from our publication server KOPS or from the Physical Review Letters website.